The Joint Commission outlined six facts about its standards for accreditation.
Here are the key details to know:
1. New standards are adopted only if they relate to quality of care, surpass law or regulation and can be accurately measured.
2. Standards are developed with input from healthcare professionals, provides, subject matter experts and government agencies, including the CMS.
3. The process for standards development starts with The Joint Commission preparing draft standards after garnering input from focus groups, experts and technical advisory boards.
4. The standards are then distributed nationally, and The Joint Commission takes comments on them.
5. After necessary revisions are made, the standards are approved by executive leadership.
6. Pilot testing of the new standards is conducted, and surveyors are educated on how to assess the new standard's compliance. The standards are then published, and ongoing feedback is sought for standard improvement.